Mumbai Indians Coach Backs Rohit Sharma’s Winning Mindset

Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardene believes Rohit Sharma is the kind of player who can lead the team to their sixth Indian Premier League (IPL) title. He says Rohit’s “winning mentality” sets him apart. Rohit is also considered one of the all-time greats of Indian cricket.

Currently, the team is led by captain Hardik Pandya. They are now just two wins away from winning the trophy. On Friday, Mumbai defeated Gujarat Titans by 20 runs in the Eliminator match. Now, they will face Punjab Kings in the second Qualifier on Sunday in Ahmedabad, which is expected to be a tough contest.

The winner of this match will face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the final on June 3.

Mumbai had a poor start to this season, losing four of their first five matches. But then they bounced back strongly, winning seven out of their next eight games. This strong comeback helped them reach the playoffs.

In the playoffs, Mumbai were in a do-or-die situation. Interestingly, they had lost both league matches to Gujarat earlier. But when it mattered the most, they managed to perform and win.

Coach Jayawardene said, “When a team has a winning culture, it becomes easier to move forward.”

He added, “This Mumbai team may be new, but there’s no shortage of experienced players.”

Now, Mumbai will face Punjab Kings — a team that lost to Bengaluru in the first Qualifier. Punjab is led by captain Shreyas Iyer, who said, “We may have lost the battle, but not the war.”

Punjab struggled with their batting in that match, getting bowled out for just 101 runs and losing by eight wickets. However, their overall performance in the league stage was strong. Despite never having won the IPL before, Punjab finished at the top of the table among the 10 teams in the league round.